YRE Over the Years
The Young Reporters for the Environment (YRE) programme gives young people a platform to research environmental issues and promote solutions through investigative reporting, photography, and video journalism.
When the project was experimentally absorbed by what was then the Foundation for the Environmental Education in Europe (FEEE) (today's FEE), the last step to create Young Reporters for the Environment had finally been taken. In 1994, Luxembourg would become the first country to officially implement the YRE programme. It was no longer an experiment.
Take a stroll down memory lane to see how our programme has spotlighted youth environmental voices over the years.
YRE’s legacy
As YRE has grown, so has its visual identity. Our logos through the years reflect different chapters in the programme’s history.
YRE logo 2008-2026
25 years of YRE logo - 2019
30 years of YRE logo - 2024
YRE logo 2026-present
2026
2026 was a year of creativity, collaboration, and youth voices in action across the YRE network. The 2025–2026 YRE International Competition celebrated 44 awarded entries, showcasing powerful environmental journalism through articles, photography, and videos from young people around the world.
The competition also introduced the Youth Ambassadors Jury, giving young people a direct role in recognising outstanding entries, while the new YRE Virtual Gallery created an immersive space to discover and celebrate their work.
2025
The 2024–2025 YRE International Competition focused on Ecosystem Restoration, with 234 entries from 20 countries exploring biodiversity, degraded ecosystems, and sustainable practices through environmental journalism. From 62 shortlisted entries, 37 were selected as winners, alongside 30 national podcasts receiving the Gosia Luszczek Podcasting Award.
The competition also welcomed entries from YRE partners, including the World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM) and ASPnet Schools. Beyond the competition, YRE collaborated with the United Nations through UN at Your Doorstep, creating new opportunities for young reporters to engage with global environmental issues and bring youth perspectives into the conversation.
1st Place Winners of YRE Article Category, Slovakia: ‘A Living Wall for Clean Air’
1st Place Twinning Category Winners, Türkiye, Germany Spain, Slovenia: ‘Hitting the breaks on fossil fuels’
2024
2024 marked 30 years of Young Reporters for the Environment, celebrating three decades of young people using environmental journalism to investigate issues, share solutions, and inspire action around the world. To commemorate the milestone, YRE unveiled a special 30th anniversary logo designed by Ellie Wray-Davies, bringing a personal touch from within the FEE community to the celebrations.
The 2023–2024 YRE International Competition received 248 entries from 46 countries, with 25 entries selected as winners. Through articles, photography, and videos, young reporters explored environmental challenges including climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.
30 years of YRE - logo designed by Ellie Wray-Davies
2024
1st Place Winners of YRE Article Category, Sri Lanka.
Young Geckos Cleaning the Streets for a Clearer Future
1st Place Winners of YRE International Collaboration Article; Turkey & Slovenia.
RED ALERT: LIONFISH!
2023
1st Place - Single Photo Reportage, 11-25 years old, Mexico.
THE NORTHERN DROUGHT
1st Place - Single Photo Campaign, 11-25 years old, Iceland.
WE DON’T CARE, DO YOU?
2022
2nd Place - Photo reportage of 3-5 photos, 11-25 years old, Portugal.
Past Fires Warn the Future: Climate Change, Loss of Biodiversity.
Single Photo Reportage, 11- 25 years old, Montenegro.
Terrifying Light: Pollution, Loss of Biodiversity.
1st Place - Photo reportage of 3-5 photos, 11-25 years old, Slovakia.
FROG TAXI: Loss of Biodiversity
2021
1st Place, Photo Campaign, 11 -25 years old, Canada.
Our world is slipping down the drain.
1st Place, Photo Reportage of 3 -5 photos, 11 -25 years old, Ghana.
The waste collecting woman who is no waste.
2020
Wales Scouts Interviewing Hannah Blythyn Minster of Environemt, 2020
YRE South Africa, 2020.
2019
In 2019 YRE received a Special Commendation award for the Global Youth & New Media Prize. This honors actions that excel in providing young audiences with information and hope for saving the Earth and that strengthen engagement between news media and young people while reinforcing the role of journalism in society.
WEEC 2019
UNESCO, Thailand 2019
Youth Mundus 2019
2018
In 2018, the YRE programme was awarded the first edition of the Earth Price by the World Environmental Education Congress (WEEC) Network and the city of Luino. This was a huge recognition of the hard work done over the years by students, teachers, National Operators and the international team of YRE.
YRE at UNESCO Youth Forum, 2018
UNDP Leadership Symposium Thailand, 2018
UNESCO Paris, 2018
2017
YRE Scotland, 2017
2016
YRE at COP22 in Marrakech, 2016
YRE Portugal at Rock in Rio, 2016
2015
Young Reporters for the Environment at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Malta, 2015. YRE Malta
Litter Less Campaign - workshop for winners, YRE Slovakia, 2017
Neoplanète media at Solutions COP21 on 10 December 2015, Yolaine de la Bigne, on the left, is a journalist specialised in the SD field and the godmother for YRE this year. YRE France
2014
YRE Portugal, 2014
YRE International Jury, 2014
2013
YRE Northern Ireland, 2013
2012
FEE YRE Northern Ireland, 2012
